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    Inland Empire
    Inland Empire
    Inland Empire
    Ebook180 pages31 minutes

    Inland Empire

    By John Howard Weeks

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    About this ebook

    Southern California s vast Inland Empire is one of the fastest growing regions of the United States. It is a wonderland of old-growth vineyards, citrus groves, hot-water resorts, Wild West landmarks, and Native American territories. America s fabled Mother Road, Route 66, runs right through it. Its fertile valleys are encircled by mountains with famous resort areas such as Idyllwild, Big Bear Lake, and Lake Arrowhead. Those mountains are surrounded in turn by some of the world s best-known desert resort and recreational areas, including Palm Springs, the Mojave, Death Valley, and Joshua Tree National Park. Inland Empire is the first book of its kind, offering a postcard-perfect grand tour of the entire region.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherArcadia Publishing
    Release dateSep 29, 2008
    ISBN9781439620731
    Inland Empire

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      Book preview

      Inland Empire - John Howard Weeks

      treasures.

      INTRODUCTION

      The Inland Empire keeps being discovered. In the beginning, Native Americans discovered a lush, enclosed valley inland from the sea. Those men and women were awestruck by what they saw. The giant figure of an arrowhead, carved by some mighty force into a rampart of the surrounding mountains, seemed like a divine sign to them that they should settle here.

      Later, in 1810, the region was discovered again. An explorer priest in search of hallowed ground for the establishment of a mission outpost was just as impressed as those first settlers. He named the valley San Bernardino in honor of a venerated saint whose feast day fell on that day.

      In the 1850s, the region was discovered again. While gold seekers were rushing to other parts of California, Mormon settlers felt called by God to choose the San Bernardino Valley. They regarded the arrowhead as a providential sign, just as the indigenous people before them had done.

      The city of San Bernardino was built, and it flourished. Other settlers came and built other cities, and they flourished, too. Great vineyards were planted, and so were millions of orange, lemon, and grapefruit trees. The heady wines from California’s first wine country and the voluptuous citrus fruits from Inland Empire orchards caused a sensation throughout the nation.

      As news spread of the Inland Empire’s fertile soil, dry climate, sunny skies, and therapeutic hot-water springs, multitudes flocked here to see, and many decided to stay. Rich timberlands were discovered in the San Bernardino Mountains, and then gold, which sent waves of settlers heading for the hills. Mountain rivers were dammed to create lakes and eventually resorts. The discovery of silver and other precious minerals in the vast Mojave Desert spurred a migration there, too.

      As the valleys, mountains, and deserts teemed with new activity, the railroads competed to lay track to accommodate the new traffic. Rail stations evolved into new cities. Old wagon trails evolved into auto roads, and in time, mighty industries were established in the Inland Empire, employing thousands of people. The federal government built military bases that employed many thousands more.

      Then, as the region grew, so did problems. Inland Empire valleys became a catch-basin for Southern California’s growing air pollution. Vineyards, citrus groves, and once-stately neighborhoods were lost to urban sprawl. The decline of the railroads wounded the economy. The shutting down or downsizing of numerous military bases and key industries hurt it more.

      But now the Inland Empire is on the rise again. In fact, it is one of the fastest growing regions in the nation. It offers too many amenities to be overlooked in a crowded Southern California. It has abundant artesian water. It has land. It has room to grow. It even has blue skies again, thanks to years of aggressive air quality controls.

      The Inland Empire is loaded with other attractions, too. There are four mountain ranges dotted with famous resorts such as Lake Arrowhead, Big Bear Lake, and others. These resorts attract millions of visitors each year. The San Bernardino National Forest is the nation’s busiest. The Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument is one of the nation’s newest national monuments. The area also has some of the world’s most famous desert resorts and recreational areas, including Palm Springs, Death Valley National Park, Joshua Tree National Park, and the Mojave National Preserve. It is crazy, almost, to have mountain resorts right next door to desert resorts. Residents can ski at Bear Valley in the morning, then sunbathe in Palm Desert in the afternoon. Then they can watch the sun go down over the world’s oddest body of water, the accidental Salton Sea. And wait, there’s more.

      Most of Southern California’s Native American gaming casinos are in the Inland Empire, and they attract immense crowds both day and night. Sports fans by the hundreds of thousands flock to the Inland Empire for NASCAR events at the Auto Club Speedway in Fontana (the West’s largest race track), for the annual Redlands Bicycle Classic in Redlands, for the Western Regional Little League Championships in San Bernardino, and for minor league baseball. In fact, almost all of Southern California’s minor league ball teams are in the Inland Empire. Music fans trek to the Glen Helen Pavilion in Devore near San Bernardino, the

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